Board 8 > Old time murderers - serial killers or something else?

(+) Yeah! (+)

There's a channel on YouTube called That Chapter, and the guy started doing podcasts. The second installment is on the Harpe Brothers, a couple of very bad men who were frequently brutal in their killings. Wikipedia gives you a bit of the story:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harpe_brothers

It got me wondering about the terminology we use for serial killers. The Harpe Brothers are sometimes called America's first serial killers. The way we understand them today, serial killers generally take a break after killing someone. These guys killed a lot of people, but the span between murders seemed to be less about taking a break and more about a lack of opportunity.

Should we really refer to them as serial killers? Is there a different designation that would fit them better?

i always thought the designation of serial killer was more about motive than anything else. like a psychological compulsion or for the thrill of it. but i guess definitionally the 'serial' part refers to having multiple victims across a longer time period.

based on the wiki page it sounds as though they were killing more for the pleasure of it than to rob people which is probably why they're considered serial killers and not like, wild west style thieves